2018 MAGNERS SYDNEY IRISH FESTIVAL FIRST ARTIST ANNOUNCEMENT!

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Nigel Hunt
6 years ago
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1 2018 MAGNERS SYDNEY IRISH FESTIVAL FIRST ARTIST ANNOUNCEMENT! #SydneyIrishFest For release Thursday, 15 March 2018: The Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) and Paul Sergeant Events (PSE) are proud to announce the first artists set to perform at the inaugural 2018 Magners Sydney Irish Festival on 10 and 11 November 2018 at Sydney Showground, Sydney Olympic Park. The 2018 Magners Sydney Irish Festival will be a fusion of art, culture, music, dance, food and drink that will culminate in a competitive Hurling match between two championship-winning teams for the 2018 Wild Geese Trophy. The Festival will also feature traditional Irish dance performances, hurling clinics, market stalls, comedy, face painting, marching bands, buskers, amusement rides, player autograph sessions, activities for kids of all ages right across the weekend. Headlining the 2018 Magners Sydney Irish Festival stage on Saturday, 10 November will be Dublin s own, Damien Dempsey. Dempsey s voice is all Dublin, yet wholly distinctive. It s almost clichéd to say it, but he is part of a rich bloodline of Irish singers from Luke Kelly to Ronnie Drew, Christy Moore to Andy Irvine. To describe Damien Dempsey s music to someone who hasn t yet been exposed to it would be to take some reggae, fuse it with traditional Irish music, add in rock and folk and put it all through a grounded working class worldly aware yet caring consciousness, and you re some bit of the way there.

2 Now, 17 years into an astonishing career, Damien Dempsey recently released his seventh studio album, Soulsun, and he doesn t hesitate in identifying the most satisfying aspect of his career. Seeing what the songs mean to people is mind-blowing, he says. People come up to me and say, You saved my life. At the start, it was about saving my own life and healing myself. There s music for everything; getting up and dancing having a good time, music to think deeply to you name it, absolutely everything under the sun. There s music for all situations, but my music is about healing and hope. ( Lúnasa, one of the most influential bands in the history of Irish traditional music, celebrated its twentieth anniversary in Named after an ancient Celtic harvest festival in honour of the Irish god Lugh, the group that Folk Roots magazine once called an Irish music dream team was formed from members of some of Ireland s greatest bands and over the years has proven its mettle time and again, having sold over a quarter of a million records, performed more than 2,000 shows in high-profile concert venues across 36 countries, and collaborated with many notable artists outside the tradition. Two decades ago they ascended to the forefront of contemporary Irish music, and there they ve remained, a leading voice in the genre and the standard against which others are compared. Twenty years on, the group continues to evolve, playing new music that is as state-of-theart and aggressively infectious today as it was so long ago. With a new album set for 2017 and a robust touring schedule to match, Lúnasa continues to set the standard and will lead the way for decades to come. Music is one of Ireland s most celebrated exports, and Lúnasa, a band like no other, has been at the forefront of that musical migration. Lúnasa delivers music with a passion that informs every note and continues to define and redefine the genre. Their innovative arrangements and unique approach to the music create a singular sound that has propelled Irish acoustic music from familiar ground into surprising and exciting new territory. ( The hottest Irish acoustic group on the planet - New York Times "The best Irish traditional music band in the world right now." "One of the band's greatest collective talents is their ability to pull off technically difficult and precise music with a casual, fun air, almost as if the five met for the first time with their various instruments at a pub and joined together spontaneously for a session - Wild Geese Saint Sister (Morgan MacIntyre and Gemma Doherty) have a huge following in their native Ireland with music drawing on early Celtic harp traditions, 60s folk and electronic pop to create atmosfolk' a mix of soulful vocal harmonies, dreamy synth and electro-acoustic harp. Formed in 2014, their debut EP, Madrid, was released in November 2015 and within its first year reached over 1 million streams on Spotify and in 2016 they were named "Best Irish Band" by the readers of the Irish Times. The 2018 Magners Sydney Irish Festival are pleased to welcome Saint Sister for their first Australian performance. ( Day two - Sunday, 11 November - commences with the Big Irish Brunch and plenty of family friendly activities, hurling clinics and more live music in the buildup to the pre-game

3 welcome parade of the teams into the stadium, before the teams take the field for tip-off at 3.30pm. Hurling dates back to the 7 th century and is one of the national sports of Ireland. It s a physical contact sport, the fastest game on grass in the world and spectacular to watch. Played in two thirty-five minute halves by teams of 15 per side, hurling is without a doubt one the most skillful sports played today. (See below for further background information) The Wild Geese Trophy will be a fully sanctioned, competitive game contested by reigning All Ireland champions Galway and the winner of the 2018 Allianz National Hurling League. It will be the first time a full format Hurling game will have been played outside Ireland. The Wild Geese Trophy will mark the cultural respect that exists between the Australian and Irish people. It has been named in honour of 6 Irish fenians who successfully escaped the drudgery of a British ruled penal colony in Western Australia in 1876; an act of defiance that would later become known as the Catalpa Rescue. The 2018 Magners Sydney Irish Festival is a celebration of everything it means to be Irish and a must do experience for anyone with Irish heritage. For the non-irish, it s the best way to experience the fun and friendly Irish culture without leaving Australia. Introductions to hurling, the weekend s events, artist bio information and hi res photos, can be downloaded from here. Tickets to the 2018 Magners Sydney Irish Festival are on sale NOW through Ticketmaster Magners Sydney Irish Festival Sydney Showground, Sydney Olympic Park Saturday 10 November and- Sunday 11 November 2018 Tickets on sale NOW through from #SydneyIrishFest For further information, interviews, photos, etc, please contact: Rina Ferris - Ferris Davies PRM Ph: rina@ferrisdaviesprm.com.au

4 For information in relation to sponsorship, catering or concession applications, please contact: Sarah Brady Head of Commercial, PSE Ph:

5 Notes for Editors: WHAT IS HURLING? Hurling is an ancient game and one of the national sports of Ireland. Widely considered to be the fastest game on grass, the game consists of two teams of 15 trying to drive a ball down the field with a stick in order to score against each other. Without a doubt, it is one the most skilful sports played today. When first experiencing a hurling match (either watching or playing), you'll notice that the components of other sports such as baseball, field hockey, rugby, and soccer are realized in the game. A good hurler uses many skills that require agility, bravery, fitness, hand-eye coordination, strength, and teamwork. The stick, or "hurley" (called camán in Irish) is curved outwards at the end, to provide the striking surface. The ball or "sliotar" is similar in size to a baseball but has raised ridges. Hurling is played on a pitch that can be up to 145m long and 90m long. The goalposts are similar to those used on a rugby pitch, with the crossbar lower than in rugby and slightly higher than a soccer one. You may strike the ball on the ground, or in the air. Unlike field hockey, you may pick up the ball with your hurley and carry it for not more than four steps in the hand. After those steps you may bounce the ball on the hurley and back to the hand, but you are forbidden to catch the ball more than twice. To get around this, one of the skills is running with the ball balanced on the hurley to score, you put the ball over the crossbar with the hurley or under the crossbar and into the net by the hurley for a goal, the latter being the equivalent of three points. GAELIC ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION: The Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) is Ireland s largest sporting organisation and is celebrated as one of the great amateur sporting associations in the world. It is part of the Irish consciousness and plays an influential role in Irish society that extends far beyond the basic aim of promoting Gaelic games. The GAA was founded on November at a meeting in Thurles, Co. Tipperary, by a group of spirited Irishmen who had the foresight to realise the importance of establishing a national organisation to make athletics more accessible to the masses and to revive and nurture traditional, indigenous sports and pastimes. At that time, it was largely only the gentry and aristocracy who were allowed to meaningfully participate in athletics. Until then all that was Irish was being steadily eroded by emigration, intense poverty and outside influences. Within six months of that famous first meeting, GAA clubs began to spring up all over Ireland and people began to play the games of Hurling and Gaelic Football and take part in Athletic events with pride. The Association today promotes Gaelic games such as Hurling, Football, Handball and Rounders and works with sister organisations to promote Ladies Football and Camogie. The Association also promotes Irish music, song and dance and the Irish language as an integral part of its objectives. The GAA has remained an amateur Association since its founding. Players, even at the highest level, do not receive payment for playing and the volunteer ethos remains one of the most important aspects of the GAA. The organisation is based on the traditional parishes and counties of Ireland. As a communitybased organisation, the GAA has over 2,200 clubs in all 32 counties of Ireland. gaa.ie/ PAUL SERGEANT EVENTS: Event industry veteran Paul Sergeant formed Paul Sergeant Events Pty Ltd (PSE), a Melbourne based management company specialising in securing and promoting niche events in Australia, in Sergeant, former head of several major Australian and international venues including Wembley Stadium, Qudos Bank Arena (formerly Allphones Arena), Suncorp Stadium and Etihad Stadium, believes there is an array of quality, niche event content around the world that is

6 seeking to expand beyond its own boundaries but doesn t necessarily have the resources or knowledge to take on a move into Australia and has set up PSE to do just that. Another core function of the organisation is providing advisory services to the right s owners of fringe sports events and venues within Australia who often require a helping hand to support their growth which is something Sergeant and PSE are well equipped to provide. Sergeant stepped down from his role as CEO of Melbourne s Etihad Stadium in 2016 and in forming PSE has brought together a team of experts that include CFO Chris Charleson, Head of Commercial, Sarah Brady and Head of Operations, Glen Rainsbury. I ve always worked on the basis that you need to know where the talented people are and these people are among the best in the industry here in Australia. Chris, Sarah and Glen are highly respected across the sport and entertainment business internationally. They know what they re doing, have immense experience and aren t afraid to roll up their sleeves and make things happen, Sergeant says. The experience of the PSE team is spread across the world. Sergeant was the former boss of Wembley Stadium and Millennium Stadium in the UK, as well as Suncorp Stadium, Allphones Arena and Etihad Stadium in Australia. Charleson, a Chartered Accountant, was the former COO/CFO of Ticketek and Nine Events based in Sydney while Brady headed up many consumer business and sport presentation departments at an array of sporting clubs including the Brisbane Lions, South Sydney Rabbitohs and GWS GIANTS. Rainsbury, has held a combination of sales and operational roles at Brisbane Entertainment Centre and The Gabba as well as with the Royal Horticultural Society with the Chelsea and Hampton Court Flower Shows in London. Collectively, the PSE team has the commercial and operational experience of dealing with more than 10,000 major events across a 37-year period, including indoor and outdoor sporting events, concerts, religious gatherings, festivals, functions and conferences. More recently, the PSE team formed the core management team that proved to be a major success at Etihad Stadium in Melbourne. psevents.com.au

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